COLUMN: Now is the Perfect Time for the Atlanta Braves to Make a Splash in Free Agency
With the foundation Alex Anthopoulos has built by locking up young talent, now is the perfect time for the Atlanta Braves to sign a big free agent.
The hesitation of signing any free agent to a long-term deal is warranted, as many of those contracts don't end well ($) and can sometimes cripple a franchise.
But at some point it feels like the Braves need to take that risk -- and there is no better time than now.
As Lindsay wrote here, the Braves don't have to do anything major this offseason. They could take this roster currently, add a few depth pieces, and things would have to go sideways for them not to make the postseason in 2024.
The reality of this postseason format is to get there and pray for the best.
But You Can Do Both
To bring up a counterpoint to Lindsay's article, making a big splash now doesn't have to alter the future.
There is a lot of money potentially coming off the books following 2024: With Max Fried, Charlie Morton, Marcell Ozuna, and A.J. Minter all set to hit free agency, that alone frees up over $60 million.
Those are also big holes you have to fix -- mostly in the pitching staff.
But that's why you can afford to make that big move now for a starting pitcher to help fill that hole in the future, and to make another run with those guys in 2024.
The Braves are most certainly going to go over the luxury tax again in 2024, but it's the third year in a row when the penalties become significant.
Making a huge splash now allows you to have that one huge budget year to go for it all, and then with the money coming off the books it gives you a chance to reset and get back under the luxury tax should they decide that's what they want to do.
Another point is, even if you make a big singing that will tie up your budget for years, there's not really many changes you need to make from season to season for a while -- assuming that big splash if for a starting pitcher.
Your core position players are locked up through at least 2027, and Spencer Strider is locked up through at least 2028.
Let's say the big splash you make doesn't pan out and the worst of worst case scenarios, there is still a foundation here that will allow you to compete for years to come.
Making a big splash now just puts extra icing on the cake and improves your odds of winning a World Series during this window, which should ultimately be the goal and the mindset.
Yes, winning in the postseason is about being hot at the right time (see 2021) and you can't always control that aspect of it. But you can control the likelihood of that happening by acquiring as many studs as possible.
Look at what the Texas Rangers just did, spending wildly and it all came together at the right time in the postseason with their two big free agent additions in Corey Seager and Marcus Semien coming through time after time.
Go make an over-the-top statement and sign Shohei Ohtani or Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Or make a trade for Corbin Burnes or Dylan Cease and give them a big extension.
Alex Anthopoulos has done a marvelous job of setting the Braves up to succeed for years to come. Making a big splash this offseason isn't going to change that, so why not just go all-in?
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